January 18, 2001

Well, I'm back. That was a beautiful trip. Exhausting but wonderful. And the snow in Chicago was a nice cap at the end. I really really wish I had someone to passionately embrace while I was in Florence...it's almost too romantic to bear being alone there. Should I put pictures up somewhere? Does anyone care? I've got some good ones...some really good ones...but I'm lazy and don't want to scan them right now.

So why am I reneging my promise to show 'Lullaby' at the Lakewood on the 4th? Well, it has something to do with...well, I don't want to say until I have written proof to point to. I'm far too full of empty prmoises and suppositions; I'll just stop saying anything about my movies until after it happens. That way, I won't let anyone down.

Oh, by the way, I decided to shoot 'Still' on DV after all...and then, since it is only a short, I can take any money I might raise and transfer it to 35mm. Sounds like a good plan to me. I also might be pushing back photography on that one for a few other projects which I might be hired on as director of photography...never a bad idea to extend your resume and prove that you're worth hiring.

OK, that's it for this week. Or month. Goodbye for now...

December 27, 2000

To start off on a sad note...Jason Robards died yesterday. And although his long career yielded many great roles, it was his performance in 'Magnolia' that will be forever cemented in my mind. He was sick during photography, but his performance as the dying Earl Partridge was as brilliant as anything else he's ever done. His ten minute monologue was powerful enough to move an entire audience to tears...and when he sings his verse of 'Wise Up'...it gets me every time. He couldn't have asked for a better final role.

So...

I just turned twenty yesterday. No more teen angst for me. I guess it's a good thing I got 'Lullaby' out of my system in time...that movie was born of and is made up primarily of teen angst, and god forbid I deal in that area any longer.

On a completely different note, I'm off to Italy in about 15 hours. I'm going to try to stay up the whole time, so I can sleep during the nine hour plane ride. Although, after having just seen 'Castaway,' I imagine I'll be sufficiently nervous and my adrenaline will keep me awake for the duration on the flight.

So I'll be away for two weeks...nothing new to those of you who know how infrequently I update the site. But if by any chance the plane crashes over the Atlantic or anywhere else and I die an untimely death, please rest assured that my sinking corpse will feed some hungry seafaring creatures; hopefully, I'll taste good. And since Curtis will be working on polishing the sound mix while I'm gone, I hereby leave the task of adding it to the finished film to anyone who feels fit to do the job.

And also, please distribute my belongings in a timely fashion.

Furthermore, don't feel obligated to film any of my scripts. I'm not Stanley Kubrick. Yet.

Wait...'yet' implies that I will survive this flight. Darn. Now I can't be all melodramatic.

Wow, that picture up above is pretty cool. A nice present from George Lucas to all the salivating Star Wars fans who will even forgive Jar Jar Binks if Episode II is half as cool as we hope it is.

Christmas is here again...which means on Tuesday it'll be time for me to take my annual trip to Best Buy to use all the gift cards I've received. Yay! But I do miss getting big boxes wrapped up under the tree, containing any one of the millions of toys I might have wanted that year. But I did get a toy this year :) Thank you, Heidi, for the delightful Britney Spears doll. It is now posed with my other prized action figures atop my editing suite.

A really nice gift would be a couple of festival acceptance forms. I know I'm not in Digidance; I don't know about the rest. We'll see. I don't have my hopes up, you know? I might have made a decent film, but a million decent films always slip through the cracks. Congratulations to Kat Candler, though, whose film 'Cicadas' made it into Digidance after winning the audience award at the Austin Film Festival. Someday, Kat, I promise I will actually make it to Austin to see your film.

Wow, this Christmas song on the radio is going to make me cry if it gets any prettier...

I may be a cynical bastard, but I still fall for the communal love that seems to spread at this time of year. I'll stop now before I get sickeningly sentimental.

Well, it looks like I wasn't offline for as long as I thought I would be. I managed to get CuteFTP to work.

I think I just finished work on 'The Knocker' for good, I think. I'll have to check with James to make sure...but I think it's done. Which means I can kick it from the hard drive. Then I just have to get a good master of 'Lullaby' off the computer and I can erase it, too. 140 gigs of free space...more than I can comprehend.

Looks like 'Still' is a go, or something like that. We've scheduled photography to start sometime in February. I'd really like to raise some money to shoot on film...so if anyone out there wants to donate money, e-mail me right now! I guess I'll put up more info as it develops...there's not a whole lot to say about it right now. I've reworked the script a little bit, and I'll post the new draft soon. I've noticed that I always say I'll post things soon, and then I never do. I remember saying something about the short story that went along with the feature script I'm still writing...well, that short story wasn't the best example of my writing, and I never rewrote it, so it's still not anywhere on this website. And probably won't be any time soon.

School's out...finally. Maybe I can finish that script now. My goal is to have three feature scripts done by this time next year. Once I'm successful like Woody Allen and start making one movie a year, I'll need some material to fall back on.

By the way, why does everyone hate 'Deconstructing Harry?'

December 6, 2000

I watched 'Say Anything' tonight, which made me cry. Then, on the way home, I heard the David Bowie and Bing Crosby 'Little Drummer Boy' duet, which made me cry some more.

Wow. It's December already...almost Christmas. And I'm almost twenty. No more teen angst for me, I guess.

I can't wait to make 'Still.' I really want to shoot it on film. It needs to be shot on film. But I don't know if we'll be able to afford it. I'll do my best. Making a short was a good idea...it will satisfy my craving to direct again, so that I can hold off on making my next feature...I need more time to cast it, and to raise money, so I can shoot on 24P and cast Will Ferrell in his first dramatic role.

Last week of college. I'm so relieved. But until then, I still need to get at least a little sleep every night. So goodnight.

November 22, 2000

Well, I've had to create an archive page for this log now. This website is going to wind up being so massive...sometimes I go looking around on it and find pages I put up a long time ago that I've completely forgotten about. I remember when I first made it I wanted to have lots of hidden stuff; I guess I succeeded.

'The Knocker' premiere went incredibly well. It looked beautiful up there on the big screen, and everyone seemed to really like it a lot. James and Christine have a really great little film on their hands.

The Deep Ellum Film Festival was really fun too. Let's see...I met Sandra Bullock, Griffin Dunne, E. Elias Merhige (who directed 'Shadow Of The Vampire,' and who I think thought we were criticizing him when we asked him about a few instances of poor lighting in his film), and actually got to go out to dinner with John Pierson. It was so cool...I feel like a fanboy geeking out, but man, that's John Pierson!

Now I'm hoping that by the end of January, 'Lullaby' will have its official premier. It just keeps getting pushed further and further back...I'm so lazy. James and I decided to play our films together, so that'll be a fun night. And hopefully we'll be playing in some other festivals by then as well.

By Friday, I should have some news on a new project I'm working on up in the news section. Until then, go see 'Requiem For A Dream' and revel in its excellence.

November 10, 2000

Well, some evil sort of corruption invaded my computer, and the original rough cut of 'The Knocker' wouldn't open. So now I'm cutting the whole thing over again, so that it can be turned into the Deep Ellum Film Festival on Monday. Last time, I finished it in seventy two straight hours (for the whole story, check out the Crooked Spin website -- it's pretty funny). I just started the new cut today, and I've already finished ten minutes, so it's going a lot faster the second time around. And it's turning out so much better...this is a real example of rewriting a movie while editing. We've basically thrown the script away, and fractured the story quite a bit. It's really neat.

But I'm sick, and that sucks...I just want to sleep sleep sleep. I've had DVDs playing all day, to keep me occupied while I'm waiting for stuff to render. 'The Insider' just ended...and it's been a year and a week ago now since I first saw it, the night before it opened. How can one movie have so many incredible shots? I don't understand. I love the ramping effect...I've never seen anyone use it the way Michael Mann does.

Uh oh...out of memory. Be right back.

November 8, 2000

Let's see...DigiDance...NoDance...Phoenix Film Festival...Dallas Video Festival...darn, there are so many. I passed up Slamdance. I procrastinated a bit too long, and didn't feel like rushing to make the deadline and paying a higher entry fee. I probably wouldn't make it in, anyway...that festival is becoming as competitive as Sundance. But their entry form is awesome, and I really enjoyed filling it out. I'll probably kick myself later for not sending it in.

But what is really cool is that 'The Knocker' made it into the Deep Ellum Film Festival. They had told us it wasn't accepted...until this morning, when suddenly it was part of the schedule and they were requesting an exhibition copy. So now my rusty old computer is back up and running; I hope it can manage to print out an entire copy of the film.

I think I have 'Lullaby' just where I want it to be now. Maybe a few tweaks to the feedback scene, but other than that it's ready. Now to just get rid of that hiss. Curtis and I thought most of it had been removed. We were dead wrong. He's going to pick up a new program which should enable us to get the rest of it out of there. Out of six thousand frequencies, the hiss is on about five or six. We just don't have time to do that kind of thing manually. I also have to finish the score. I hate temp tracks; you always grow to love them. I still want to have the premiere sometime in early December; hopefully, I can get it all set up by then. But that procrastination factor will probably kick in again...

My new script is finally picking up steam. It is about a girl who doesn't exist. How cool is that? I don't know, I hope it's at least a little bit cool. The other night I had one of those wonderful writers' moments; I had this really flat, perfunctory scene, and as I was staring at the boring words of which it was composed, a little ephinany struck, and the scene suddenly became beautiful in its own little way. I love it when that happens.

Oooh...I'm excited about 'The Grinch' and 'Unbreakable' and 'Requiem For A Dream.' The crappy summer is over, now we can move into the always delectable fall movie season. I can't wait.

Wow, it's been over a month since I last looked at this page. Since then, it's grown warmer and then colder and then warmer and now it won't stop raining. Somewhere in there it almost snowed...it's been a record breaking year for temperatures in Texas.

The screening of the movie on Saturday was reaffirmation that my movie doesn't completely suck. My theory is that the end of the movie is so beautiful that it makes everyone forget about how boring the rest of it is. I like the credits a lot, too. There's some other good stuff in there, too, but I don't know for sure. I was too busy watching the audience to see if anyone was falling asleep (if anyone was, they hid it really well). I'm falling asleep myself as I write this, but I'll withhold for a few more minutes.

A big thank you to everyone to who came out. I'd say "a big hug and kiss," but I'm just too introverted.

Man, has anyone seen the trailer for that new Gus VanSant movie, 'Finding Forrester?' It looks awesome. Even better than 'Charlie's Angels.' I actually have hardly seen any movie lately. Only one or two a week, and I've hardly been reviewing any of them. It's been awful. I saw 'Bamboozled' the other night, and in case I don't get a chance to write a full review, I'll just say that while the satire was very uneven, the film as a whole was powerful enough to warrant an enthusiastic reccomondation. And it looked really good too -- shot almost entirely on a VX-1000. Why does no one else use Canon XL-1s?

Now that I'm not so busy, I need to get over this sleeping spell so I can start being productive on new material. But I think I need to sleep a little bit more before I concentrate on waking up.

September 23, 2000

Every year, there is one day where the weather suddenly turns cold. That day is today this year. This morning I was out walking and the wind was blowing in from the north and a torrent of leaves began raining down upon me, all red and gold; and the air smelled like winter. All I could think of was the line from 'American Beauty'....about how sometimes there is so much beauty that you just can't take it. It just makes me want to cry.

And the news about the Fort Worth Film Festival was also nice. I hope they have a good projector this year. Maybe I'll rent one myself...just to make sure it looks good. I've decided that the cut of the film will still be a 'rough' cut, although the picture is mostly locked. I'm going to use a temp track, because I'd rather have a great score that I didn't write (and don't have permission for, but you don't know that) than a so-so score that I did write in a hurry...

I'm so scared of the screening. All these people who have been waiting to see it...what if they don't like it? I could care less about critics...but the people who have been supporting me and looking forward to seeing it. And the cast and crew, too...a lot of them haven't seen anything but the trailer. I really hope it makes everyone happy. I'm so scared that it won't...but I hope it will.

And for everyone that does come to the screening....even if you don't like 'Lullaby,' you'll get to see the trailer for the best damn short film ever made (that being The Knocker)...and trust me, that should be incentive enough to go.

I'm taking a break from writing my new script right now...actually, I'll probably only write a few more words and then I'll crash for the evening. I love balancing college, work and filmmaking...actually, I hate it, but it sure keeps me busy.

This new script...I hope it works. I really like the idea of it. I guess you could say it's an existential movie...literally. Maybe at some point I'll put pages of it up here...so it's development can be tracked. I sure love using ellipses, don't I? I also polished up the script for the short film I want to shoot sometime this fall. It is untitled, of course...I hate thinking up titles. And I hate giving characters names.

I cut a trailer for 'The Knocker.' It turned out so well...I hate saying I'm proud of it, but I am. I love editing when it turns out the way I want it to. It's actually scary...it even scared me after I'd been working on it for nine hours.

Curtis and I are going to begin the sound mixing on 'Lullaby' this week...hopefully, it will go as quickly as he thinks it will. I finally went back and watched it after a break from looking at it...and I actually kind of liked it. Who would have thought. I want to start showing this thing to people...before everyone forgets about it. Before I forget about it. There's nothing worse for a project than getting excited about another project while you're still working on the former.

I've got a black and white copy of 'Lullaby' rendering on my G4 at this very minute...so I can decide if I want to take that route. It takes about ten hours for the whole movie to render, so I'll have to let you know how it looks at a later date.

And with that said...goodnight.

Hmmm...big things are stirring up, I think. Crazy happenings are afoot. Things I can't talk about now...

Following up from the last entry, 'The Cell' was phenomenal. I know a lot of people -- most people, I think -- hated it, but I loved it. A breath of fresh air in this boring summer. I've hardly written reviews for half the movies I've seen, because they all were just...mediocre. 'The Cell' is truly good, though, in my opinion, which doesn't necessarily mean anything.

I didn't get the grant from the Texas Filmmakers' Production Fund. I didn't think I would...I sent in the application at the last minute, it was kind of sketchy, and I asked for a lot of money. I'm kind of relieved, actually. I wasn't quite sure what I would have spent it on. I mean, there are lots of things I could have spent it on, but I would be under pressure to make sure I spent it the right way.

I'm going to be working on the sound mix with my good friend Curtis over the next month or so, getting it presentable for the Fort Worth Film Festival (if it's accepted, that is). I've got a lot of the score pieced together, ambient pieces on the piano and bass, some strings, etc. Should work. If not, I'll just temp track it with the 'Magnolia,' 'Insider' and 'High Art' soundtracks and hope I don't get sued.

Shot some pickups and reshoots for 'The Knocker' this past weekend. Once again, no sleep. Once again, a fantastic experience. Once again, let me refer you to Crooked Spin's website.

And I've got this new script that I need to keep writing. This is like the fourth script I've started in the past year and half -- maybe this one will end up being finished. Or maybe I've hit my creative plateau....knock on wood.

I'm tired of typing these invisible interpolative Ps which HTML requires...so I'm going to stop typing. Right...about...now.

Ahhh.....I spent the weekend back behind the camera. I was shooting 'The Knocker' for James and Christine. It is a short film about...well, you can read all about it at their website, which is located here. It is soooo good. I can't thank them enough for brining me on as DP. I can honestly say it was the most fun I've ever had in my entire life; three days of non stop shooting, no sleep, good food but no time to eat, and all the other wonderful aspects of making a film. The best part was the wonderful cast and crew, the most incredible group of people I've ever worked with. I can't wait to start editing....just looking at the dailies was a wondrous experience.

Boy, it almost sounds like I'm belittling my own film, doesn't it? Not at all...it's just that we've all learned so much from 'Lullaby' and we finally had the chance to apply it.

I've changed the title to this section too. I'm sure you noticed it.

More later....I have to go see 'The Cell' now. Well, I don't have to...but I want to.

I just finished making the most disgusting movie I've ever made. It was a little short project for Adam's art final, a hi8 video of Adam vomiting. I've always kind of wanted to do a vomit scene...I hate watching them, and I wanted to make one that even I couldn't stomach. I think I've succeeded. This thing is the most repulsive little video I've ever seen. And since I made it, I have to take perverse pleasure in it. There is some kind of delight to be had in saying you know how to stir up a batch of really nasty fake puke.

I think I need to stop procrastinating and working on the score for 'Lullaby,' and the foley and all that sound stuff. I need to have a REALLY GOOD cut done by the end of September. Not a final cut, but a very good one. We'll see what happens...if the music makes the movie, I'm going to submit it to every festival around.

So far, I've just sent it to the Fort Worth Film Festival. So if accepted, you will definitely be able to see 'Lullaby' there in October. Sundance...I really don't think I have much of a chance at. Unless the music REALLY elevates the movie. The odds are just too awful. Slamdance...now there's a possibility.

My new script is 8 pages now. Slowly. Slowly but surely. It's coming.

I hate going to work.